Living a Christ Centered Life

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I wanted to share some messages that struck me in our church attendance yesterday about Christmas, and living a Christ centered life. A speaker shared a story that I had never heard before, and I thought it was something worth passing on, it’s called the 3 Levels of Christmas.

Level 1: It’s all about Santa and presents and reindeer and frosty. It’s the fun stuff. We all love it, I decorate with it, it takes over a lot of the season. Eat yummy food, wear ugly sweaters, and It’s fun, but it’s not what Christmas is all about.

Level 2: This is a higher level. At this level, we revere the baby Jesus. We speak of his sweet virgin mother, of Joseph and the 3 wise men, angels with their glad tidings, the star in the east. Reflecting on the glory of His birth.

After both of those levels, most is forgotten come January 1st. The decorations are put away, the tree and the nativity. In order for the true meaning of Christmas to last all year long, to give us meaning and purpose and change in our lives, we must celebrate at the 3rd level.

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Level 3: Is all about the adult Jesus, His life and teachings. It’s at this level that the Savior brings lasting joy and peace. He teaches us how to love and to forgive. This is the Christ, the adult Christ, who gave us the perfect example, and asked us to follow Him. Accepting that invitation is the way that all mankind can celebrate Christmas all year and all life long.

We then went onto our women’s meeting, where a quote really stuck out to me from a talk, A Christ Centered Life:

No other single influence has had so great an impact on this earth as the life of Jesus the Christ. We cannot conceive of our lives without His teachings.

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We then had a discussion, and the teacher listed His teachings on the board: love they neighbor as thyself, turn the other cheek, serve others, don’t judge others, have faith the grain of a mustard seed, impart of thy substance, etc. etc. etc.

Our natural man, our instincts are not always in tune with those teachings, we have to train ourselves with regular practice and determination, being prayerful for strength as we aim to achieve this higher way of living. I thought of forgiveness especially, how HARD it can be to forgive when we have been wronged or slighted or forgotten. How challenging it is to pull the metaphorical rocks out of our backpacks and live a life changed, but it can be done, He taught us how.

We cannot conceive our lives without His teachings, at least I can’t, because they’ve become such a part of me, and I feel so grateful for that. Though I’m a work in progress, constantly striving to live as He taught, I am familiar with the way, the truth, and the light, because I’m familiar with His gospel. It teaches me how to live joyfully, despite the pain and the sorrows that come to everyone in life.

Lastly, our family was gifted The 25 Days of Christ ornaments/booklet this year. Each night, is an ornament with a story/scripture from the book.

I’ve really enjoyed reading each night, not just the stories of baby Jesus, but stories of His life and teachings, and how our hearts can be changed by them, then drawing our hearts to the 3rd level of Christmas.

Here is a 2 minute video that’s very touching.

Christmas is a beautiful, magical time of year, and I love to bring out that level 1 goodness, and also make sure our family celebrates at level 2, but I aim to live at level 3 at this time, and all year long, and just grateful for all of it.

May you feel the joy in your heart all year long, but for this week, Merry Merry Christmas!

To see more Christmas family ideas, click on this link or on the image below!

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Hello! I’m Kristen, and I believe in creating intentional family fun, to build lasting memories for my children. I'm delighted to have you come along for the ride. Email me with any questions, I always reply if I see it! {Read More …}